OUR LITTLE SECRET

Part 38

The following day, at around 8 o'clock in the morning, Cillian heard a loud knock on his front door and was surprised when his sister Siobhan walked in with a cup of hot coffee in her hand.

He had barely slept the night before, plagued by guilt and regret over what had happened with Amanda.

"Hey," Siobhan said softly, sitting down next to him on the sofa. "How are you feeling?" she asked, reaching out to squeeze his hand.

"Like shit," Cillian admitted honestly, raking a hand through his hair.

"I guess Y/N didn't take it well when you told her?" Siobhan asked, her voice filled with sympathy.

Cillian shook his head. "No, she didn't. And I can't blame her, really. I would feel the same way if I were in her shoes," he replied, taking a sip of his coffee.

"What are you going to do now?" Siobhan asked, concern etched on her face.

"I don't know," Cillian admitted honestly, running a hand through his hair. "I love her, and I want to make it work, but I don't know if I can. Not after what I've done."

Siobhan sighed heavily, wrapping her arm around her brother's shoulders in a show of support. "Oh you really fucked up, didn't you?" Siobhan said, her voice softening with concern as she looked at her brother. She knew Cillian was hurting, and she wanted to be there for him, but she also knew that he needed to take responsibility for his actions.

Cillian sighed heavily, nodding in agreement. "I know," he said, his voice barely above a whisper which is when Siobhan noticed a small red box on the coffee table in front of them.

The words 'Cartier' were engraved on the top and Siobhan raised her eyebrows questioningly, gesturing towards it with her hand. "What's that?" she asked, curiosity piquing in her voice. "Is that a belated birthday present for me?" she joked just as Cillian looked at the box as if he had forgotten it was there.

Cillian chuckled, shaking his head. "No, it's not a belated birthday present for you," he said. "It's nothing. Just something I have to return to the shop now," Cillian said, picking up the box and frowning.

"Who was it for?" Siobhan asked, her curiosity now piqued.

"It was for Y/N," Cillian admitted, looking down at the box with a mixture of sadness and guilt. "But it doesn't matter now. None of it does," he told his sister with regret who picked the box up from the table and opened it.

"Oh my god, Cillian," Siobhan said. "That's..." She trailed off, not knowing what to say. "Is this what I think it is?" Siobhan asked, her eyes wide with awe as she looked at the stunning diamond ring that sparkled in the morning light.

Cillian nodded, feeling a surge of guilt wash over him as he looked at his sister's face. "Yeah," he said quietly.

"You were going to propose to her?" Siobhan whispered, her eyes filled with shock and awe as she looked at her brother.

Cillian nodded, feeling the weight of his decision pressing down on him once again. "Yeah," he said quietly, taking a deep breath. "I mean, I know things haven't been easy for us, but I love her, and I wanted to make it official. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her."

Siobhan looked at the ring for a long moment before closing the box gently and handing it back to Cillian.

"It's beautiful," she said quietly, her voice tinged with sadness.

Cillian nodded, taking the box from his sister and setting it down on the coffee table. "Yeah" he said, his voice laced with regret. "And I fucked it all up."